Mongol invasions of Korea

The Mongol invasions of Korea occurred from 1231 to 1259 when the Mongol Empire invaded Korea, forcing the Goryeo dynasty to become tributaries of the Mongols.

Background
In 1216, after the Mongol Empire's conquest of the Khitans, the Khitans invaded Goryeo Korea. They were repelled by the Goryeo general Kim Chwi-ryeo before being finished off by a Korean-Mongol alliance in 1219. In 1225, the Mongols demanded tribute from Goryeo, but the Koreans executed the Mongol envoy, leading to the Mongols preparing a punitive expedition to invade Korea.

Invasion
In 1231, Ogedei Khan sent the Mongol general Saritai to invade Korea, and the Mongols quickly crossed the Yalu River and conquered Uiju. The treacherous Goryeo general Hong Bok-won joined the Mongols, and, while the Mongols took Anju, the Korean general Choe Woo defeated the Mongols at Kuju. The Mongols bypassed the Korean army and took the capital of Kaesong, and the Mongols advanced as far south as Chungju. Goryeo sued for peace, and the Koreans paid an exorbitant tribute to the Mongols and allowed for them to leave 72 administrative officials to occupy several north Korean cities. In 1232, Choe Woo ignored King Gojong of Goryeo's pleas and began to fortify south Korea against any further Mongol attacks, moving most of the population to Ganghwa Island. The Mongols sent Hong Bok-won to punish Goryeo for its betrayal of the peace terms, but they failed to take Ganghwa, and Saritai was killed by a monk at the Battle of Cheoin. In 1235, the Mongols launched a new offensive, again failing to take Ganghwa but succeeding in ravaging the countryside, forcing several Goryeo fortresses to surrender, and massacring the defenders. In 1238, Goryeo sued for peace, and the Mongols withdrew in exchange for the receipt of a distant princess and ten noble children as hostages. In 1247, the Mongols demanded that Goryeo move its capital back to Songdo and send the Royal Family as hostages, but the Koreans refused, leading to Amuqan and his army pillaging the peninsula. Guyuk Khan's death in 1248 forced the Mongols to withdraw, but their raids continued until 1250. In 1251, when Mongke Khan became Khan, he demanded that the Koreans surrender, receiving their surrender in 1254. However, the top Goryeo officials remained on Ganghwa Island, provoking the Mongols to invade foru times between 1253 and 1258. In 1254, 206,800 Koreans were taken captive during Jalairtai's invasion. In 1258, the Goryeo court had the Choe clan exterminated in order to appease the Mongols, and, in 1259, the Koreans agreed to become autonomous vassals of the Mongol Empire, and Kublai Khan bragged about how, although Emperor Taizong of Tang had failed to conquer Korea at the Siege of Ansi in 645, Kublai Khan was finally able to conquer the Koreans. The Mongols would rule over Korea until the 1350s, when the Red Turban Rebellion against the Yuan dynasty in China allowed for the Koreans to expel the Mongol garrisons from the peninsula.